Some Things I’m Grateful For Right Now

It’s hockey night in Canada. Well, in the U.S. too, as the Stanley Cup final game between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers is playing on the big screen. Ordinarily, I’m not all that much of a hockey fan, but . . .

So, for the moment at least, I find myself here on the sofa tapping out words and sneaking an occasional peek while Gerry watches the game with the sound off, as is his usual way. He says he can see what’s going on and doesn’t need the cacophony of the play-by-play. Works for me.

I’m thinking about small and not-so-small things. Events that have transpired since I was here last, moments I marked as precious, and little things that I like to call “joy sparkers.” Sometimes, I write about these things with a Friday’s Fave Five post. Other times, like this time, I do so when the mood strikes.

Summer officially began a few days ago and I’m hoping she shows up strong in a way that spring never quite mustered. The garden needs heat. I need heat, and a long string of days when I can, alternatively, putter in the backyard garden and get lost in a book. Soon, I tell myself. Soon.

Gerry and I have taken our grown-up cameras out a few times in recent weeks and I’ve shot some images of this beautiful land of living skies I call home. The storm clouds have been amazing. I love photography on many levels. It teaches me to pay attention and look closely, and the quiet, creative practice of post-processing feeds something in me.

A dear friend and a new friend stopped in for an overnight visit a couple of days ago. You may know her. If not, let me introduce you to my friend Barb, formerly of Kamloops and soon to be returning resident of Nova Scotia. Barb and traveling companion, Lee Ann, are driving across Canada. She’s doing something similar to what I did in that she’s returning to her homeland, the place where her roots run deep and strong. We bid a windy Moose Jaw farewell to them on Saturday morning. I’m so excited for her as she journeys back to her heart’s home.

Yesterday, I had lunch with my granddaughter. Yes, she’s in Kamloops and I’m in Moose Jaw, but we figured out how to have lunch together when we weren’t together a long time ago. She texted me mid-last week asking if I wanted to have lunch on Sunday. So, after church, I put some salad in a bowl, fired up my MacBook, and got on a video call with my granddaughter, who was also eating lunch. We chatted for about an hour and a half. It was a sweet, sweet time.

At church yesterday, someone gave me a little book saying she thought of me when she saw it. The Quiet Life, it’s called. A little book by Ray Ashford with page after page of quotes and thoughts, it’s perfect to pick up and read a few pages now and then. The book, and the thought that someone thought of me enough to share it, are both great gifts.

I downloaded an app on my phone called Merlin Bird ID. I first heard of it at a Moose Jaw Nature Society meeting and, as it turns out, everyone who is anyone uses it to identify bird calls. (That’s a joke. But you knew that. 🙂 ). I’ve started keeping a list of all the birds whose sounds I’ve identified (well, actually, sounds that the app has identified) and am learning who sounds like what. It’s just the kind of quiet, thoughtful, fun I enjoy.

Speaking of birds, a pair of mourning doves have been hanging around our back deck. I see them often first thing in the morning, between 4 and 5. A smaller one has joined them. I just peeked out and the three of them are out there right now. Cool, yes?

I think that’s enough for now. The second period just started and the score is tied at 1. I’m going to dive into my Kindle for a while and see where the plot twist is going to end up in the book I’m currently reading. Hope you’re having a good evening. Go Oilers!